Bowling ball hole pad



L n-I! Sept. 25, 1962 c. F. MITCHELL BOWLING BALL HOLE PAD Filed June 4, 1959 INVENTOR. CHARLES F. MITCHELL ATTYS.

3,055,661 BOWLING BALL HOLE PAD Charles F. Mitchell, 181 Crescent Drive, Akron, Ghio Filed June 4, 1959, Ser. No. 818,051 2 Claims. (Cl. 273-63) The present invention relates to bowling ball finger or thumb hole insert pads or patches, and especially to such patches or pads adapted to be inserted into the finger and/or tumb holes in a bowling ball to improve the gripping action between the bowlers hand and the bowling ball.

Heretofore there have been various different types of bowling ball finger patches or pads provided and these pads are provided to be inserted into a finger or thumb hole in a bowling ball to improve the grip between a bowlers hand and the bowling ball. Grips that have been very effective are shown in prior United States Letters Patents No. 2,708,578 and No. 2,777,693. Such pads or patches have been particularly effective in the holes in bowling balls engaged by a players thumb and/or finger.

Some bowlers like even a more positive type of a finger grip action than can be provided by the aboveidentified patented structures.

Furthermore, bowlers are constantly seeking the best possible means for extremely accurate control of the ball by the bowler at the instant that the ball is being released by the bowler and any type of improvement in the finger or thumb engaging pads used in the bowling ball holes is very desirable as a small improvement in the grip or control of the ball by the bowler may materially improve the results obtained.

The general object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved type of a bowling ball insert pad particularly characterized by the provision of a plurality of massive, longitudinally extending ribs in the pad.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel type of a bowling ball insert pad which is relatively inexpensive but yet which will give effective, improved control action for a finger engaged with a bowling ball having the pad in a finger hole thereof.

A further object of the invention is to provide a bowling ball insert pad which has effective engaging action with the finger of a bowler, and which pad has inwardly tapering rib sections at the inner end thereof.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention will be made more apparent as the specification proceeds.

Reference now should be had to the structure shown in the drawings, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is an elevation, partially broken away and shown in section, of a bowlers hand engaged with a bowling ball having an insert pad of the invention provided therein;

FIG. 2 is a plan of the pad of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front elevation of the novel bowling ball pad of the invention; and

FIG. 4 is a vertical section taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 2.

When referring to corresponding parts shown in the drawings and referred to in the specification, corresponding numerals are used to facilitate comparison therebetween.

Referring now particularly to the details of the structure shown in the drawings, a bowling ball 1 is shown and it has a finger receiving or engaging hole 2 provided therein as well as a thumb hole 3. A bowlers hand H is shown engaged with the ball 1 with a finger in the hole 2 and with the bowlers thumb being received in the hole 3. A bowling ball pad 4, embodying the principles Stats tet fiti Patented Sept. 25,, 1962 of the invention, is shown in position in the finger hole 2, and a similar pad, if desired, can be positioned in the thumb hole 3. The pad 4 extends around about one third to one half of the periphery of the finger hole 2 and a major portion of the length of the hole. An important feature of the pad 4 is that it has a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs 5, 6, 7 and 8 at the outer end of the pad 4.

The ribs are formed in an axially outer section of a strip or layer 11 of material providing a friction member in the pad 4. While other numbers of ribs, like the ribs 5 through 3, may be provided in the pad 4, it has been found that the provision of the four-ribbed pad is very effective, especially where the center ribs and the outer ribs are of substantially equivalent heights with relation to the remainder of the pad and where the ribs are spaced transversely from the adjacent rib about the width of a rib. The center ribs 6 and 7 are appreciably thicker than the other ribs in the pad and these center ribs are at least about two to three times the thickness of the remaining portions of the strip 11 in height, and may be as much as seven to nine times as thick as a uniform thickness smooth surfaced axially inner portion 12 of the strip lll.

As a special feature of these center ribs 6 and 7, they are provided with axially inwardly tapered or beveled end portions indicated at 9 and 10 in the drawing so that the ends of the ribs 6 and 7 preferably smoothly taper down to the thickness of the remainder of the pad. The ribs 5 through 8 are of such length, and the pad 4 is positioned in the finger hole 2 so that the tapered ends 9 and lb of the center ribs are exposed or presented for engagement with the ball or tip of the bowlers finger, and with the other portions of the ribs 5 through 8 being available for gripping engagement with the bowlers finger by providing spaced but parallel surfaces to the finger. Normally some flesh and/or skin of the bowlers finger will flow down between adjacent ribs as a serrated surface is provided to which the bowlers finger naturally adapts itself, to a certain extent, so that serrations are provided in the bowlers finger to aid in obtaining effective engagement between the bowlers finger and the pad and bowling ball to which the pad is secured. If desired, the ribs 5 through 8 may have somewhat rounded outer surfaces, or at least the longitudinally extending shoulders or edges formed thereon can be beveled or rounded off slightly so that no cutting action is effected on the bowlers finger.

The pad 4 may be made from any suitable material, such as a rubber-cork material of the general type disclosed in the previous patents referred to hereinbefore. However, the pad can be made from any conventional natural or synthetic rubber material, or compounds thereof, or it may be formed from porous rubber, especially if compounded and produced to be of high tensile and abrasion resistant properties. Other similar porous substitutes having desired strength could likewise be used in forming the pad 4, or to form the surface layer or strip 11 therein. This strip 11 is of generally rectangular shape, and the inner ends thereof may be beveled, to facilitate inserting the pad 4 into a bowling ball finger hole. Usually the side portions of the pad 4 in the layer 11 thereof taper gradually in thickness to come to a substantial feather edge at the lateral margins of the pad. The uniform thickness portion 12 of the strip 11 may be quite thin, such as about .025 to .04" thick while the maximum thickness of the ribs 5 to 8 is about from three or four to about seven to nine times the thickness of the portion 12, as previously indicated.

The laterally outer ribs 5 and 8 preferably are of less thickness than the center ribs and are spaced from the margins of the strip 11. In general, the top surfaces of the ribs 5 through 8 define an arcuate surface when the pad 4 is operatively positioned.

FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawings best show that the pad '4 includes a back layer, or strip 13 which preferably has .a pressure sensitive adhesive on both surfaces thereof. .Such strip 13 is, of course, effectively bonded to the .back surface of the material forming the layer 11, where- .as the opposite surface of this strip 13 has a flexible cover 14, made from paper, or similar material, secured .thereto. Such cover 14 is releasably bonded to the strip v1.3 for facilitating removal of the cover from the outer .adhesive layer at the time of use of the pad 4 of the invention. When cover 1 4 is removed, the pad can be inserted into the bowling ball hole 2 and be forced against the wall thereof. Thereafter, the pressure sensitive, or other good, conventional adhesive on the strip 7 'will retain the patch 4 in fixed position to facilitate effective grasping engagement of the bowlers finger with such hole 2.

From the foregoing, it is believed that the novel ribs :and their relationship to each other provides an improved insert pad and that the objects of the invention .are achieved.

While one complete embodiment of the invention has been disclosed herein, it will be appreciated that modification of this particular embodiment of the invention may be resorted to without departing from the scope of :the invention as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A bowling ball hole patch or pad comprising an adhesive flexible backing layer having an adhesive coated back surface for engaging a wall of a bowling ball hole, a solid but flexible strip secured to the face surface of said backing layer, said strip having only a plurality of parallel uniform width center and edge ribs extending only longitudinally thereof for more than one-half the length thereof from the outer end of the patch, the center ribs of said set of ribs being at least of three times the thickness of the unribbed areas of said strip and cooperating with said edge ribs to provide spaced unbroken longitudinally extending areas for contact with a finger inserted into a hole in a bowling ball in which said patch is secured, said ribs being beveled downwardly in a longitudinally inwardly extending direction to provide inclined surfaces for effective engagement by the ball of a bowlers finger when engaging a bowling ball finger hole.

2. A bowling ball hole patch or pad comprising an adhesive flexible backing layer having an adhesive coated back surface for engaging a wall of a bowling ball hole, a solid but flexible strip secured to the face surface of said backing layer and having a uniform thickness section therein, said strip having only a plurality of parallel center and edge ribs extending longitudinally thereof for more than one-half the length thereof from the outer end of the patch formed thereon, said ribs being uniformly positioned on said strip and being spaced from each other about the width of a said rib, the center ribs of said set of ribs being about seven to nine times the thickness of said uniform thickness section of said strip and cooperating with said edge ribs to provide spaced longitudinally extending areas for contact with a finger inserted into a hole in a bowling ball in which said patch is secured, said ribs being beveled downwardly in a longitudinally inwardly extending direction for a length greater than the rib widths to provide inclined surfaces for effective engagement by the ball of a bowlers finger when engaging a bowling ball finger hole.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,011,760 Gallinant Aug. 20, 1935 2,646,985 Nagy et al July 28, 1953 2,777,693 Mitchell Jan. 15, 1957 OTHER REFERENCES Bowling Magazine for February 1959, p. 14 cited. 

